Mapping the Loss of Jobs

The coronavirus pandemic has had a devastating impact on the U.S. economy. The glacial response of the government in responding to this economic crisis has in turn had a devastating impact on American jobs. Since March 14th 22.2 million Americans have filed for unemployment and the unemployment rate has risen to at least 17%.

The Urban Institute has used data from Washington State, which publishes weekly unemployment numbers by industry, to estimate the likely number of low income job losses across the United States. The Where Low-Income Jobs Are Being Lost to COVID-19 interactive map visualizes the neighborhoods most vulnerable to COVID-19 job losses. The map allows you to view the estimated total number of job losses in counties across the country. It also allows you to select individual industries to view the number of estimated jobs lost in each county by job sector.

You can drill down to census tract level on the map to view the estimated number of jobs lost in individual neighborhoods and even view details on the number of estimated jobs lost in a tract by industry sector.



The Mercury News has visualized the number of unemployment claims made in each state (last updated April 10th). The Which states have most workers making unemployment claims interactive map colors each U.S. state to show the percentage change in the number of people claiming unemployment in the state compared to one year ago.

If you select a state on the map you can view details on the percentage change in unemployment claims compared to one year ago and one week ago. You can also view the number of people who claimed unemployment last week (dated April 10th). Across the whole country unemployment claims are 2,800% higher than one year ago.